Trump & the GOP agenda

January 21, 2017

In Gettysburg, PA, during October 2016, Trump released a plan for his first 100 days in office. His plan outlined three main areas of focus: 1) ‘Drain The Swamp’ by cleaning up Washington including imposing term limits on Congress; 2) Protecting American workers; 3) Restoring rule of law.

But here’s what you are actually getting between repeal with no replacement of the ACA, campaign lies, conflicts of interest and ‘ick picks’ for cabinet nominations and/or appointments. Here are links to articles too numerous to post.

The REAL Plan: Not Even the First 100 Days

The federal government first week in session in review:

Trump fires all Ambassadors and Special Envoys as he orders them out by inauguration day.

House brings back the Holman rule which will allow them to reduce an individual civil service, SES position, or political appointee salary to $1. This will effectively fire the employee by amendment attached to any piece of legislation. We now know why the Trump Transition Team wanted names and positions of people in the Departments of Energy and State.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell schedules six simultaneous hearings on cabinet nominees and triple-books those hearings with Trump’s first press conference in months and an Affordable Care Act (ACA) budget vote. By doing so, this will effectively prevent any concentrated coverage or protest.

House GOP expressly forbids the Congressional Budget Office from reporting or tracking ANY costs related to the repeal of the ACA.

Trump continues to throw the intelligence community under the bus to protect Putin, despite the growing mountain of evidence that the Russians deliberately interfered in our election.

Trump breaks a central campaign promise to make Mexico pay for the wall by asking Congress (in other words: we the people – the taxpayers) to pay for it.

Trump threatens Toyota over a new plant that was never coming into the US nor will take any jobs out of the US.

House passes the REINS act giving them veto power over any rules enacted by any federal agency or department. For example: If the FDA or EPA bans a drug or pesticide, Congress can overrule the ban based on lobbyists, not science. If the House doesn’t like that endangered-species designation, Congress kills it.

In the middle of the night on 1.12.17

Blocked an amendment that would have protected people with pre-existing conditions and disabilities

Blocked an amendment that makes it easier for young people to stay on their parent’s plans until they are 26

Blocked an amendment allowing contraception to be covered under health insurance

Blocked an amendment protecting the Medicaid and Medicare programs

Blocked an amendment that would have protected health reforms that closed the prescription drug coverage gap under Medicare

Blocked an amendment that would make it easier for children to be covered under Medicare/CHIP

Blocked an amendment that would have created legislation and a fund to lower drug prices by importing drugs from Canada

Blocked an amendment that would limit veterans’ ability to choose VA health care, enhanced housing for veterans and their dependents, facilitating medical facility leases and prohibiting the Secretary of Veterans Affairs from employing individuals who have been convicted of a felony and medical personnel who have ever had their medical licenses or credentials revoked or suspended

Blocked an amendment that would protect rural hospitals and health care providers

Passed a bill to provide for an exception to a limitation against appointment of persons as Secretary of Defense within seven years of relief from active duty as a regular commissioned officer of the Armed Forces to allow for nominated Defense Secretary – James N. Mattis, whose nickname is ‘Mad Dog Mattis’ – to be appointed

Within hours of being sworn in as 45th president of the United States, Trump signed his first Executive Order instructing the secretary of Health and Human Services to “exercise all authority and discretion available to them to waive, defer, grant exemptions from, or delay” parts of the Affordable Care Act that would place a fiscal burden on states, individuals or healthcare providers. Article: Trump’s Executive Order On Obamacare Means Everything And Does Nothing

The White House issued a statement attempting to justify Trump’s desire to eliminate EPA rules affecting the energy sector was a ‘distortion’. The statement said that eliminating power plant climate rules, clean water rules and other environmental regulations would “greatly help American workers, increasing wages by more than $30 billion over the next 7 years.” Article: Trump White House Distorts Wages Figure on First Day

Who is affected by repeal (with no replacement plan) of Affordable Care Act

Affordable Care Act affects many people, who may not be aware their insurance will be impacted. This document was created to consolidate the information in a usable/shareable Google document. Compiled by Deborah Edwards-Onoro | Updated: 1.14.17

2. A Housing and Urban Development Secretary – Ben Carson – who is a former neurosurgeon with no relevant experience in urban development or planning other than being raised in an inner city and having patients who lived in inner cities, said he wasn’t interested in running a government agency because he’d never served in a federal capacity…but was qualified to run for President of the United States. Requires Senate confirmation. During his hearing, Mr. Carson faced pointed questions about past remarks on the dangers of federal assistance. “Safety net programs are important,” he said. “I would never advocate abolishing them without having an alternative for people to follow.”

3. A Commerce Secretary – Wilbur Ross – who owned a dangerous coal mine where twelve miners died in an explosion and is worth $2.9 Billion according to Forbes magazine. Requires Senate confirmation. Ross had a message for Mexico and Canada: Be ready to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement. Some Republicans said they were taken aback by Trump’s threats to impose big tariffs, but Ross assured them that the president-elect was merely being a good negotiator.

4. A Secretary of State– Rex W. Tillerson – who ran ExxonMobil and was awarded the 2013 Kremlin Order of Friendship by Russian President Vladimir V. Putin. Requires Senate confirmation. Mr. Tillerson was sharply questioned on his views on Russia, where he has had close business ties. He expressed reservations on climate change and said that he did not view it as the imminent national security threat that some others did.

5. An EPA Administrator– Scott Pruitt – who is Oklahoma’s Attorney General, has sued the agency on behalf of fossil fuel companies and plans to follow the president elect’s directive to dismantle the agency “in almost every form.” Requires Senate confirmation. During his hearing, Mr. Pruitt said he disagreed with Mr. Trump’s statement that climate change is a “hoax,” but hedged when asked how much of it is caused by human activity. He criticized federal environmental regulations and emphasized a states-based approach by defending what he called “common sense” environmental regulation and arguing that farmers, ranchers and business had been hurt by intrusive federal rules.

6. An Energy Secretary – Rick Perry – who is a former Texas governor, proposed in 2011 scrapping the Energy Department while he was seeking the Republican nomination for president, but forgot its name (oops) on national television and just might not know what it does. Requires Senate confirmation.

7. A Health and Human Services Secretary– Tom Price – who is a six-term Republican congressman from Georgia, an orthopedic surgeon and has led opposition to the Affordable Care Act, has attacked policies that protect women’s health, introduced legislation that would make it easier for doctors to defend themselves against medical malpractice lawsuits and has been aligned with positions of the American Medical Association. Requires Senate confirmation. Mr. Price said in his first hearing that repealing the Affordable Care Act would not leave millions without health insurance, but he gave few details about the administration’s plans to replace the law and did not rule out cuts to Medicare or Medicaid. He will also be questioned by the Senate Finance Committee next week.

8. An Interior Secretary – Ryan Zinke – who is Montana’s freshman representative, a former Navy SEAL commander who was an early supporter of the president-elect, ran for office largely on a national security platform and has a League of Conservation Voters score of 3%. Requires Senate confirmation. When asked about climate change during his hearing, Mr. Zinke broke with Mr. Trump, saying that he did not believe it was a hoax.

9. An Attorney General– Jeff Sessions – who is an Alabama senator opposes civil and voting rights and was denied a federal judgeship because of racially charged comments and actions. Requires Senate confirmation. During the first day of his hearing, Mr. Sessions said that the law “absolutely” prohibits waterboarding, and he offered no hints about a workaround to reinstate it. On the second day, testimony from Representative John Lewis, a Georgia Democrat and civil rights leader, highlighted the racial undertones of Mr. Sessions’s nomination.

10. An Education Secretary– Betsy DeVos – who is a former Michigan Republican Party chairwoman, promotes charter schools that siphon funds from public schools (i.e. Detroit City Schools), founder/owner with husband of Amway, net worth about $5.1 Billion and owes the State of Ohio $5.3 million for campaign violations fines (see articles below). Requires Senate confirmation. Billionaire philanthropist DeVos faced tough questions during Tuesday’s session. She refused to rule out removing funding public schools if appointed, criticized by Democrats for wanting to “privatize” public education, praised by Republicans for her support of charter schools and vouchers, admitted her family may have made donations to the Republican Party totalling $200 million and stated that guns might have a place in schools due to the threat from grizzly bears.

11. A Transportation Secretary– Elaine L. Chao – who is the daughter of a shipping magnet, married to Majority Senate Leader Mitch McConnell, former labor secretary under former President George W. Bush, a fixture in Washington DC’s GOP circles and net worth reported to be in the multi millions. Requires Senate confirmation. Ms. Chao’s nomination has faced little opposition from lawmakers. She spent most of her hearing promising to further study the issues she will oversee.

12. A Treasury Secretary – Steven Mnuchin – who is a former Goldman Sachs executive, served as president elect’s finance campaign chairman, has deep roots within Hollywood and reportedly is worth $40 million. Requires Senate confirmation.

13. A Defense Secretary – James N. Mattis – whose nickname is ‘Mad Dog Mattis’, former Marine General, considered a ‘Warrior Monk’, has been a critic of the Obama administration and would need a waiver from Congress to lead the Pentagon because he has been out of uniform for less than seven years. Requires Senate confirmation. General Mattis diverged from Mr. Trump on several issues during his hearing, striking a tougher stance on Russia and a more supportive one on NATO and saying that he supported the Iran nuclear agreement.

14. A White House Chief of Staff – Reince Priebus – who is former Republican National Committee chairman will steer the president-elect’s agenda through Congress and develop the relationships needed to do so. Appointed.

15. A Chief Strategist – Stephen K. Bannon – who was the chairman of the president-elect’s campaign, is a right-wing media executive who promoted the nationalist movement through his website Breitbart News and many have denounced Bannon for representing racist/bigotry views. Appointed.